Abraham

(Arabic, Ibrahim) Legendary ancestor of Jews and Arabs, also revered by Christians and all Muslims. The BIBLE presents an image of Abraham that roughly corresponds to the way of life common in Canaan between 2000 and 1600 B.C.E. According to the Bible, Abraham left the city of Ur in Mesopotamia and traveled to the land of Canaan. In fulfi llment of a promise from GOD, he and his wife SARAH had a son, ISAAC, despite their advanced age. (The Bible says Abraham was 100 years old [Genesis 21.5]. Isaac's son JACOB became the ancestor of the Jewish people. Arabs trace their descent to Abraham through Ishmael (Arabic, Ismail), the son of Abraham and Hagar. Muslims consider Hagar Abraham's fi rst wife. They attribute the building of the most sacred of all Islamic shrines, the KAABA in Mecca, to Abraham. A well-known story relates how God commanded Abraham to SACRIFICE his son. Jews tell this story about Isaac. Muslims tell it about Ishmael. Abraham obeyed God without question. He stopped only when an ANGEL informed him that God's command was merely a test. Abraham's faith as seen in this incident is the theme of a book, Fear and Trembling, by the Danish philosopher, Søren Kierkegaard. Abraham is a very important religious fi gure. Three of the world's most prominent religions, JUDAISM, CHRISTIANITY, and ISLAM, are often called "Abrahamic religions" because they see themselves as worshipping the God of Abraham.